JUST LISTED Jim BUCHTA

Survey says: Buy nearer to Trader Joe's than Whole Foods

Several months ago we told you that houses that were near a Starbucks were far more likely to be worth more than those that weren't, according to a national survey of property records by RealtyTrac.

RealtyTrac is back with another analysis that looks at how proximity to a Whole Foods or Trader Joe's affects home values. Here's what they found:

Homeowners near a Trader Joe's have seen an average 40 percent increase in home value since they purchased, compared to 34 percent appreciation for homeowners near a Whole Foods (which is the same average appreciation for all ZIP codes nationwide).

Houses near a Trader Joe's also tend to have a higher value on average: $592,339, or 5 percent more than the $561,840 average value for homes near a Whole Foods. The average value across all ZIP codes nationwide was $262,068.

Homeowners near a Trader Joe's pay an average of $8,536 in property taxes each year, 59 percent more than the $5,382 average for homeowners near a Whole Foods. The average property tax across all ZIP codes nationwide was $3,239.

THE MILL MIKE HUGHLETT

Former Famous Dave's CEO lost stock options

Ed Rensi gave up 75,000 stock options when he abruptly resigned as Famous Dave's CEO in June after only a year in the post.

Last week, along with releasing a dismal quarterly earnings report, Famous Dave's criticized Rensi for making changes that upset customers.

Rensi, a onetime high-ranking McDonald's executive, resigned as Dave's CEO on June 18. Upon his resignation, 75,000 stock options granted in January 2015 were "forfeited," Famous Dave's said in a federal securities filing Friday.

Rensi had undertaken a major initiative to remodel the barbecue chain's restaurants and add items to the menu.

But Dave's, currently being run by interim CEO and board member Adam Wright, said in a statement that "the changes included smaller portions, different plateware and changes to iconic items such as cornbread muffins and other poor decisions."

THE MILL Evan Ramstad

Target promotes trolls just at the right moment

When people griped at Target Corp.'s decision to remove gender-specific signs in its toy department, someone created a Facebook account to impersonate the company and respond, a practice called trolling. The fake account was taken down Thursday, and then Target posted a picture of troll toys, soon returning to its stores. Social media mavens applauded that. The company said it was just good timing.